Tom Mather, Ph.D describes a really important experience for dog owners to be aware of right now in August:

I was harshly reminded yesterday that it is now LARVAL tick season. This picture shows just one of three that I found biting my arms. Attached for MORE than a day, maybe going on 2 days. Yep, ticks feeding on the TICKGUY! Even though they were on my arms in easy view, I just missed them in my tick checks. Larvae are just really, really tiny. Get ready for larval tick season by checking out these resources http://bit.ly/larvalticks.

And August doesn’t just bring out the larvae of blacklegged (deer) ticks; this time of year is also when larvae of Lone Star ticks are most abundant and active. Known by various names –seed ticks, turkey lice—larval ticks in some regions are mistakenly identified as chiggers, or just overlooked altogether. Both types of larvae hatch from eggs, typically laid in a single massive clump of 1,500-3,000 eggs. Think about it, hundreds of larvae latching on in just ONE unfortunate footstep--ticks so small that they can go right through the weave of your socks. Read more about that here http://bit.ly/larvaecrawlthroughsocks.

On dogs, larvae may stray no further than the paw. Imagine your shock of finding miniscule sacs of blood strewn all over your house, furniture, even your bed if your pet sleeps with you. Watch this video of how one family unraveled their nightmare http://bit.ly/larvae-on-dogfeet.